“Do not worry about your life…” (Matthew 6:25)

These are words of encouragement from Jesus. It is only one line of a text found in Matthew 6:25-34 that discusses worry. Jesus tells us not to worry, and we receive it as encouragement…or maybe a suggestion. Yet read the words again, and you will hear that it is not offered as encouragement or a suggestion. The words, “Do not…”, rather indicate a command.

In Philippians 4:6, Paul reiterates this command saying, “Be anxious for nothing.” Interestingly, We are commanded to stop doing something we don’t like doing in the first place; but how many of us respond to this command, myself included at times, saying, “that’s easier said than done.” Worry and anxiety rob us of sleep and healthy appetites. It redirects our positive attitudes towards negativity and mistrust; and often influences our productivity and our responsiveness in what we do and what we say.

There are a number of ways that we invite worry into our lives, maybe without even realizing it. Social media can be one thing that feeds our worry, and yet it is where many people turn for entertainment when they are bored or when they are seeking the latest information about something that concerns them. Where or to what do you turn to when your anxiety is high? In verse 33, following shortly after the command not to worry, we read that Jesus tells us where to turn when our anxiety gets out of control: “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

Author Chris Tiegreen wrote, “Consider what our worry says of our opinion of God. When we stress and strain over a situation, are we affirming God’s providence and abundance? Are we embracing God’s grace? No, our anxiety reveals our mistrust of God’s sovereignty; it is an emotional slander of His character. We may justify our worry by observing all tragedies in the world around us, knowing that such may befall us as well. Yet God promises His sovereignty even over these, as well as His presence with us in the midst of them.”

Worrying will not fix the things that cause our worry. If we instead take the energy that we put into worrying and use it for focusing and trusting God and for following His kingdom ways, things will get turned around. It begins with each and every Christian who surrenders their worry to God and places their trust in God’s sovereignty. May we all stop putting our lives in the hands of our worry; and instead, put our lives in the hands of God. Amen.

Greetings, Church Family,
The Search Committee would like to express our heartfelt thanks to the congregation and the Leadership Team for your support throughout the survey process. Your participation was tremendous and played a vital role in helping us complete all the information needed for the church profile. We want to share a bit of background on what has taken place so far, as well as what comes next.

Throughout the fall, our committee met regularly. Our first meeting was with Doug Veal, DEM, to review steps and requirements in the search process. We reviewed our previously submitted profile and discussed the best path forward to completing the 14‑page profile by December. This profile offers a snapshot of who we are as a church and is designed to help potential pastoral candidates get to know us.

The congregational survey you completed provided essential information directly required for the profile. The Leadership Team also completed a separate set of questions, and their input was equally important. We are grateful for every comment that was submitted—your thoughtful reflections helped us enrich the profile and will continue to guide us as we begin conversations with candidates.

We also want to thank our Worship Ministry Team chairs, Chris Stockslager and Allyson McPeak, for gathering additional information we needed so promptly. Before submitting the final profile, we met with the Leadership Team for review and feedback. We are pleased to share that the profile was officially submitted during the first week of December.
And now for some wonderful news: Our profile has been approved and is now in circulation throughout the denomination. Doug shared that he feels we put together a great snapshot of our church—so thank you to everyone who contributed to this effort.

Next Steps
In the immediate future, the Search Committee will be having additional conversations with church staff to gather further insight as we prepare interview questions for potential candidates. We will be working on this throughout January while we await word on any potential pastoral candidates from the district. Once we receive candidate profile/s, we will review them carefully and determine whom we would like to interview.

We will continue providing monthly updates to the Leadership Team. If you have any questions, concerns or want to provide any additional insight, at any point, please feel free to reach out to any member of the Search Committee: Ed Beachley, Vince Bourdeau, Amy Clipp, Jack Finniff, Nicole Forsyth, Heather Kees, Ed Plank, and Eileen Smith.

Most importantly, we ask that you continue to keep our church, our future pastor, and this entire process in your prayers.

Happy New Year, The Search Committee

“A Song was Heard at Christmas”
By Timothy Dudley-Smith (b. 1926)

A song was heard at Christmas
to wake the midnight sky:
a Saviour’s birth, and peace on earth,
and praise to God on high.
The angels sang at Christmas
with all the hosts above,
and still we sing the new-born King,
his glory and his love.

A star was seen at Christmas,
a herald and a sign,
that all might know the way to go
to find the child divine.
The wise men watched at Christmas
in some far eastern land,
and still the wise in starry skies
discern their Maker’s hand.

A tree was grown at Christmas,
a sapling green and young;
no tinsel bright with candlelight
upon its branches hung.
But he who came at Christmas
our sins and sorrows bore,
and still we name his tree of shame
our life for evermore.

A child was born at Christmas
when Christmas first began;
the Lord of all a baby small, the Son of God made man.
For love is ours at Christmas,
and life and light restored,
and so we praise through endless days
the Saviour, Christ the Lord.

(© Hope Publishing Company in the United States of America and the rest of the world.
Reproduced by permission of Oxford University Press. All
rights reserved. CCLI – Copyright License 2321578 )